Françoise Montambeault
Director of ÉRIGAL and Associate Professor of Political Science at the Université de Montréal
My research is in the field of comparative politics. It focuses on the process of democratization and the construction of citizenship, more specifically, on participatory democracy in Latin America. Over the last twenty years, the region has experienced a major wave of institutional reforms that are a part of a process of deepening the quality of democracies and look to ‘re-invent’ governance, including bringing formally so-called ‘ordinary’ citizens to the heart of decision-making processes, especially at the local level.
My recent work shows the importance of the nature of participatory institutions for democratic development, but also that of political and social actors who are active and connected to them; their strategies and their interactions.
My current research follows three main themes
The role of institutionalized participation in the development of citizenship and local communities
The role of deliberation in divided societies
The concept of actors’ autonomy in participatory contexts
Recent research projects
The participedia project: a global partnership to create and mobilize knowledge about democratic innovations
Informal practices in participation: an alternative path to political participation?
Indigenous peoples, territory and resources: a comparative analysis of Prior Free and Informed Consent translation mechanisms
Governance, inclusion and citizenship in Latin America: institutions, informality and conflicts
Recent publications
Montambeault, Françoise & Dias Félix, Annabelle (2021) « When Informality Matters: Participatory Security Reform and Mechanisms of Social Embeddedness in Nezahualcóyotl, Mexico. » Journal of Latin American Studies, 1-28.
Balan, Manuel & Françoise Montambeault (dir). (2019). Legacies of the Left in Latin America: The Promise of Inclusive Citizenship, Notre Dame University Press.
Montambeault, Françoise. (2019). « ‘It was Once a Radical Proposal …’ Theories of Gradual Institutional Change in Brazilian Participatory Budgeting», Latin American Politics and Society 61(1): 29-53.
Montambeault, Françoise. (2018). « Uma Constituição cidadã? Sucessos e limites da institucionalização dum sistema de participação cidadã no Brasil democrático », Revista Estudos Iberoamericanos 44(2) : 261-272.
Montambeault, Françoise. (2015). The Politics of Local Participatory Democracy in Latin America: Institutions, Actors and Interactions. Stanford University Press.
Website
http://francoisemontambeault.ca/